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New Zealand opened their South African tour with a 38-21 win over the DHL Stormers at DHL Stadium, running in six tries to pull clear after a competitive contest and an untidy spell of indiscipline in the first quarter. The Stormers, fielding a young side, stayed in it until the final quarter before the tourists' bench and finishing power made the difference.
D. Fourie (15'), S. Senatla (56'), (78')
Tries
S. Taukei'aho (5'), S. Parker (39'), R. Ioane (67'), L. Carter (72'), J. Moorby (76'), A. Aumua (80')
Y. Ahmed (16', 57')
Conversions
B. Barrett (6', 40', 68'), J. Jacomb (73')
New Zealand were quick out of the blocks. Samisoni Taukei'aho crashed over inside five minutes, Beauden Barrett converted, and the visitors looked set to settle early. Instead, they made life awkward for themselves. Two yellow cards in quick succession, Anton Lienert-Brown on 12 minutes and Simon Parker on 13, left New Zealand down to 13 men and handed the Stormers a route back into the game.
The hosts took it. Deon Fourie finished off the pressure on 15 minutes and Yaqeen Ahmed converted to level things at 7-7. For a while the young Stormers side looked comfortable, matching the tourists at the breakdown and using their forward carriers well.
But the numbers advantage did not last, and once Parker returned it was he who restored the lead. His try on 39 minutes, converted by Barrett on the stroke of half-time, gave New Zealand a 14-7 cushion at the break. That late first-half spell mattered: the Stormers had done the hard work through the sin-bin period only to concede just before the interval.
The hosts refused to fade. Seabelo Senatla struck on 56 minutes, Ahmed added the extras, and it was 14-14 with just over 20 minutes to play. On this evidence, the young Cape side had every reason to believe.
That was as good as it got, though. The contest slipped away in the final quarter. Rieko Ioane finished on 67 minutes, Barrett converted, and the visitors had their noses in front for good. Leroy Carter added another on 72 minutes and, when Josh Moorby went over on 76 shortly before his own yellow card, the result was beyond doubt. Asafo Aumua rounded things off on the final play. A late Stormers try on 78 minutes gave the scoreboard a slightly kinder look, but the pattern was clear.
The carrying numbers tell much of the story. New Zealand made 117 carries to the Stormers' 75 and shaded the clean-break count 7-5. Anton Lienert-Brown was heavily involved, carrying 13 times for 74 metres, while Peter Lakai was busy at both ends with nine carries, two clean breaks and 16 tackles. Rieko Ioane and Leroy Carter both did damage out wide, with Carter finishing with 69 metres and Ioane 54.
CARRIES
CLEAN BREAKS
TACKLE
TACKLES MISSED
TURNOVERS WON
PENALTIES CONCEDED
YELLOW CARDS
POSSESSION
SCRUMS
LINEOUTS
The set-piece was also telling. New Zealand were perfect on their own ball, winning all 13 lineouts and all four scrums, while the Stormers lost four of their 20 lineout throws. In a game that stayed tight for long spells, that accuracy on their own put-in kept the tourists in control of the key moments.
New Zealand's discipline, however, will give their coaches something to work on. Three yellow cards and 15 penalties conceded is not a platform they will want to repeat against stronger opposition. They got away with it here largely because their attack carried them clear once the game opened up.
For a young Stormers side, this was an encouraging afternoon in defeat. They made 148 tackles to New Zealand's 115, which reflects both their effort and the amount of time they spent without the ball. Connor Evans led the way with 16 tackles, and Deon Fourie was typically busy with a try and 13 tackles before his substitution.
There was spark in attack too. Hacjivah Dayimani made 57 metres off just four carries, Warrick Gelant threw three offloads and looked to keep the ball alive, and fly-half Yaqeen Ahmed kept his composure with both conversions and 44 metres from six carries. The concern is that when the game stretched in the final quarter, the Stormers could not live with the tourists' pace and support lines.
The bench told part of the tale. New Zealand's replacements, from Aumua to Josh Jacomb, added control and finishing when it mattered, while the Stormers' changes could not shift the momentum back their way.
New Zealand start the tour with a win and six tries, but with clear reminders about their discipline. The Stormers can take genuine credit for staying level at 14-14 with a little over 20 minutes left, yet they were made to pay once the contest opened up. On this showing there is a foundation for the young side to build on, even if the final margin looked comfortable.
